Industry Called to Take More Active Role in Increasing Energy Efficiency at Great Energy Efficiency Day

By: Julia Sendor

Washington, D.C., Feb. 16, 2011 — The Industrial Panel at the Alliance’s Great Energy Efficiency Day on Capitol Hill called to action industrial energy efficiency stakeholders. Panelists representing four organizations involved in helping the industrial sector implement energy efficiency noted the room for improvement and the growing pressure for U.S. manufacturers to become more competitive. As Chair of the Organizational Charter Committee for the U.S. Council for Energy Efficiency Manufacturing (U.S. CEEM) Martha Gibbons expressed during the panel introductions, “a healthy industry is an energy efficient industry.” Drawing on her experience from working with SSAB Americas, Gibbons pointed out that while many foreign industries already have taken the same mantra to heart, the concept is only starting to hit home in the U.S. industrial sector.

Creating an energy efficiency culture is a process that requires several key steps. One of these steps is widespread adoption of the upcoming ISO 50001 global energy management standard. According to Gibbons, the Superior Energy Performance (SEP) Program serves as the best “wrapper” initiative that can encapsulate and deliver ISO 50001 to the industrial sector. While SEP currently is managed by the DOE, U.S. CEEM will provide strategic guidance and develop tools for SEP going forward.

Walking the Talk: U.S Leadership in Energy Efficiency Program Development Needs Matching Leadership in Program Adoption

“SEP and ISO 50001 are definitely game-changing tools,” said Georgia Institute of Technology’s Manager of the Energy and Sustainability Services Group Bill Meffert. To be most effective, such tools and programs require day-to-day application as well as long-term and demonstrable metrics. As one who has worked with international actors in designing and applying the ISO 50001 Standard, Meffert is encouraged with the strong U.S. leadership in the Clean Energy Ministerial that is promoting Global SEP toward industrial facilities and commercial buildings.

However, there is still some room for improvement in energy efficiency awareness and benchmarking among U.S. industrial companies. Governments in other countries such as Japan have fostered both awareness and benchmarking since the early 1970s and are leading the world in industrial energy efficiency. Relative to the United States, China has a very aggressive approach, mandating energy efficiency in certain plants. Europe is taking on more regulations, especially in regard to minimizing CO2 emissions and there is growing coordination between electric and gas utilities to achieve these reductions. The developing world is especially hungry for tools like the ISO 50001 in order to adopt the latest best practices, said Meffert.  

Global Competitiveness tied to Energy Performance

Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) Senior Director of Integrated Demand-Side Management Policy and Planning Janice Berman seconded the importance of leveraging the international Energy Management Standard.

Many of PG&E’s customers are global, so using global standards makes business sense. In addition to its current demand response and energy management programs, Berman shared upcoming plans for providing comprehensive and accurate forecasts and benchmarks for customers.

Reviving Energy Efficiency Initiatives

Industrial efficiency programs are now on an upswing, said Executive Director of the Technical Advisory Services group at the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) Tom Reddoch. According to Reddoch, many utility-led energy efficiency programs created in the mid-1990s were put on hold during the last decade. Now, however, EPRI is helping utilities revive their industrial initiatives, based on the framework of EPRI’s Industrial Centers of Excellence (ICoE).  

The ICoE has three fundamental platforms: energy efficiency, CO2 reduction and increased productivity. A kind of “one-stop-shop,” the program currently involves several large utilities such as Tennessee Valley Authority, but seeks to draw in smaller utilities as well.  Specifically targeting motor-driven applications, EPRI’s particular focus is on improving motor efficiency and on expanding the electrification of industrial processes, which can improve precision and afford greater control in industrial processes. Another sector with a lot of potential for electrification is the transportation sector. While the percentage of electric vehicles remains a small percentage, there are off-road opportunities for electrification of rail and shipyard equipment.

Industry Beginning to Consider Water Efficiency

In addition to improving energy efficiency, industrial end-users are also expressing becoming growing interest in improving water efficiency, which can also reduce energy use. Schneider Electric Energy Senior Vice President for Energy Efficiency Paul Hamilton described a situation in which a client was able to cut energy and water use by reutilizing super-heated water from processes to heat one of their facilities.  

While water overuse is a more pronounced environmental issue, stated Reddoch, water discharge (especially at high temperatures) has an impact on local habitats as heated water, when released into natural waterways, may adversely affect marine wildlife and water quality. Also, PG&E’s Berman noted that developing water efficiency initiatives will first require navigating the “patchwork” of varying state and local water use policies. Reforming these policies could, in Berman’s view, lead to a greater adoption of industrial water efficiency programs.

U.S. Industry: Answering the Call to Action Through Engagement

Sustained competitiveness and productivity through energy management requires engaging in energy efficiency initiatives.  In addition to adopting an energy lifecycle framework – first adjusting the basics (or addressing “low-hanging fruit”), benchmarking against peers and then implementing continuous energy management – that parallels the SEP program framework, Schneider Electric Energy Efficiency Program seeks the involvement of all company personnel.

“Energy management must begin with a corporate commitment” Schneider’s Hamilton said. Hamilton also mentioned that consumers are catalyzing this call to action by demanding more energy efficient products. Impassioning employees, he added, can bring about technological innovation and may also lead to the creation of innovative policies and even new business models.